Sesshomaru Vs LinNoTai
by PhoenixAmbrose
Summary: With all the battles Sesshomaru has gone through, you'd think he could kill any beast without trouble. This creature night be a challenge, however. Especially after he acquires a taste for Sesshomaru's blood. Chapter 3 now up!
1. Pain of Impossibility

LinNoTai Vs. Sesshomaru 5/5

Part 1

By: Phoenix Ambrose

L-----L

It was a cold, rainy night in feudal Japan. The warlords themselves were too afraid to stay outside in the flash rainstorm that appeared overhead. They hid in a nearby cave, believing that there was nothing in the world that could be worse than being battered by water drops the size of their heads. They couldn't be more wrong.

Within seconds, over half of the brigade was thrown out of the cave with a force that was far more than human. The corpses in the air were spared the unbearable torture that awaited those in the cave. The other half of the regiment could only stand still in confusion and terror at the feet of the monster in front of them. After all the bodies had fallen and the blood settled, the creature spoke.

"In the home of LinNoTai, there will be no vermin such as yourselves. I will torture you for a short while to ease my stomach from the stench of your flesh. Your screams shall be my remedy and your own death bells." At those words, one of the men began running. Even before his first step landed, his insides were torn away and left exposed in a hideous moment of shock and fear. He stood there, this young fighter without organs in his juvenile abdomen, looking at the beast that was now in the entrance to the cave. The other men, more worried about their own lives than the pain the young man must have felt, started to scatter in all directions. Every little shadow or hole that they found they tried desperately to enter, hoping to find another way out of the deathtrap without having to meet their executioner.

The animal that stood on two feet started to smile at their whimpers. He began to chuckle when they started to beg for their lives. His laughter was the only thing louder than their screams as he skinned them alive.

S-----S

Kagome and Inuyasha were fighting. Again. This was never a surprise to the others in their group, since they always argued after a demon was destroyed. It was like they could only relax when they argued. It did sometimes worry Miroku that Inuyasha seemed to fight Kagome with more power than he did the demons. The true worry, however, was that Kagome could – and did – always hold her own. Gratefully, these skirmishes never got to the point of being physical. It would be such a bloodbath, especially with these two. At least this rain would wash it away.

Of course, this isn't what you care about in the story, now, is it? You'd rather know how Sesshomaru works into the scenario. Well, it just so happens that Sesshomaru and company were walking within earshot of the group and decided that it wasn't wise to travel in the same general direction as the tesusaiga. Plans were already in motion to regenerate his lost arm and attack Inuyasha at full strength.

This did not leave the young Rin in the most comfortable of situations. The large raindrops were pounding her tiny body with a force that even Sesshomaru could barely dismiss. When she finally fell from the force of the sky's tears, Sesshomaru turned and noticed that she was not at his side. Almost by instinct, Sesshomaru grabbed Rin and lifted her to his shoulder. Using his very full tail as her hood, they all kept walking through the powerful storm. Every now and then Jaken would mumble a few words that he thought were under his breath.

"Why is it Lord Sesshomaru never did that for me? I have tripped into lava, been struck by lightning, burned by my own staff, and even skewered by objects that I don't wish to ever speak of! He never put me on his shoulder and carried me, not even for an instant! I've never been disloyal or unwilling of his favor. Why do I have to walk through the worst storm of this age and she gets to stay warm and dry out under the Lord's tail? It's not fair." A sigh of sadness left his bill as the last words he whispered caught a new level of understanding for his whole time under servitude to Sesshomaru. Anger built within him that he never knew and his mind filled with thoughts that he himself couldn't believe. The "what if" line began, and he wondered what it would be like without young Rin around, taking all the attention of his Master. After some contemplation, he realized that it wouldn't be much different from how it was at the moment. After a while, a new idea dawned on Jaken that questioned everything he believed. Unfortunately, he started to whisper to himself again.

"If Sesshomaru were to fall by Inuyasha's hand, that would mean I would be free from this life of fealty and could use my wand to do as I please! I could even strike down the human on his shoulder as if a bug! But, why should I, an all-powerful demon, have to wait for a half-demon such as Inuyasha to grant me the power that I probably could gain on my own? Why should I wait for anyone? I could destroy him right now! I could—"

At those words, he felt his face hit by something slightly harder than the raindrops. As Rin stood as tall as she could, she felt her own anger swell inside herself as she lifted the small demon off the ground and whispered in his ear so slowly that it made his throat dry.

"Now, you listen. As much as Sesshomaru cares for you, I won't let you plan on hurting him. Do what you want to me, but I'm going to pinch you so hard if you try something on him. Didn't you know that he heard every word you said? He didn't want me to see the disappointment in his eyes, but I did. I bet he's disappointed in you for saying that stuff after he saved you with his sword. You should be grateful that he's letting you return the favor one of these days. I wouldn't." Even though she tried not to show any emotions, her tears were still noticeable on her drenched face.

The whole time that the two were quarrelling, Sesshomaru had his attention elsewhere. The words spoken between the two were still remembered, but they were put in his memory just in case he needed them later. At the moment, though, there was something far more dangerous than the threats made by his demon servant.

Out of the trees, LinNoTai appeared. Clad in black leather and wearing no face covering, He seemed an angered ninja from a mission that was far too easy for his skill. As Sesshomaru looked at the thing in front of him, he noticed that, although the creature was very darkly tanned, there was still a deep scar from his chin to his hairline. It seemed to have only healed a few hours ago. His hair was wild, Like Inuyasha's, yet there was a shimmer to it that hair just couldn't have. At least, not human hair.

LS-----SL

"A demon. I feared a larger beast had come across the land, as loud as you were." Sesshomaru almost relaxed as the words left his lips.

"Ah, but I have come here without making a sound. Maybe you're talking about those vermin who have run from me. You know, these people." As if by command, it seemed the whole forest had come to life and released the people as they scurried about, trying their best to get away from the fiend that they thought was behind them. They ran by, only a few noticing that he got in front of them long enough to strike a conversation with a group of others. This didn't really register until they got about halfway through the man-eating section of the woodlands and the thought was soon met inside of their minds by the flesh-devouring bark.

"Well, I guess you don't like humans much. You've handled those pretty well. We'll be going now." And with those words, Sesshomaru started to walk around the leather dressed individual, only to be facing him again. This time, however, he didn't have an expression of any sort on his face. At least he had a smile last time.

"You don't smell human. Nor does the little thing with the stick. The girl is not my concern. She's too young to warrant my hate. But, what are you two?" The genuine curiosity in the scent of their blood was completely apparent, yet Sesshomaru didn't yield to the easier ways of releasing LinNoTai's grip on the situation.

"First, let us your name, newcomer. Who are you, and why do you not know a fellow demon when you see one? Or have you been so busy killing humans that you forgot our smell?" The words shot a smile across the dark individual as quickly as it brought a scowl on Rin's. As she ran at Lin, He disappeared from Sesshomaru's face and was right behind her. With a lift and a heave, she was far above the forest, still heading for the clouds.

"You monster. You'll pay dearly for that!" came bellowing forth from the lips of Sesshomaru as he attempted to unleash his Toukijin. As fast and as merciless as his attack was about to be, it was stopped before he could pull out the blade by the handle of the dark one's own sword! The fact that the creature fast enough to ruin the attack set Sesshomaru in a state of panic. He couldn't move. The only problem was, Lin could. He took the Toukijin straight from the hand of Sesshomaru so expertly that he still thought his hands were holding it. The Tensaiga was free just as quickly. Before the shafts could feel the moistened earth, they were in the brush at the end of the clearing. The short swords that the man carried were cast aside as well, causing a laugh to come from LinNoTai.

"Oh, this will be fun - to fight a demon. Well, I must say, I can't wait to see how this ends up. The human blood won't hold me through the night, so I guess I'll just have yours. I'll be fair and let you try to fight for your life, but it will be useless. I am the vampire LinNoTai."

Yet again, Sesshomaru didn't listen to the rattling of the "vampire," whatever that was. He was more worried about Rin. Her fall from the clouds (how could anyone be that strong?) had reached its half waypoint. Any second now, she would fall in the "dead" center of the man-eating forest. The trees that were there had disposed of the others seconds before and were ready for more.

The whole time that Sesshomaru was looking away, LinNoTai was growing increasingly upset. He was wondering what type of fool would hide their arm in front of another fighter when there was a challenge. He then realized that this one didn't show his arm at all. Maybe there was a problem with it? And what was with the super-fuzzy boa? The huge tuft of fur was drawing more of his curiosity than the limb, so he decided to investigate.

When Lin got his hands on Sesshomaru's tail, the demon couldn't believe it. No one had ever touched his tail!! No one! How dare he touch any part of him, especially that part! And with such cold . . . hands . . .

"Oh, I see. This is your tail. I thought you were . . . you know. I mean, here you are, wearing a woman's fur, and I wasn't supposed to think anything of it? Nonetheless, let's fight. And pull your other hand out!" The first punch landed heavily on the demon's jaw. No one had ever hit him before. Good thing he was tough enough to take the blow. As Sesshomaru wound around for his counterattack, a vampiric elbow landed on the other side of his jaw. Sesshomaru felt the blood from the breaking of his jaw and spit it as hard as he could at LinNoTai. It landed on his face, as his eyes were open. Thinking that the blood would blind him, Sesshomaru started for the death-dealing trees. Lin, having blood on his face, did the only thing a vampire could – he drank it. The intensity in the cursed blood was so much more powerful than he could have ever dreamed! He was satisfied . . . for now.

S-----S

As Sesshomaru was going through the brush that was truly just young meat-eating trees in training, he was listening for Rin's scream. He thought she would have screamed all the way down, but it wasn't so. Somewhere in the clouds, she just fell asleep. The loud screaming and high stress finally got to her and she lost consciousness. She was already caught by a branch and was soon to be devoured.

L-----L

LinNoTai, on the other hand, just didn't care. The blood was running it's course, and it felt good. At that moment, he decided to milk Sesshomaru for all the blood he had. He grabbed all the swords and sprinted after the demon scent that was so alluring to him.

Sesshomaru found Rin, held on a branch high above him. As he jumped from branch to branch, he realized that the climb might have been harder than he thought. Branches were always moving, some were going after him, and even the leaves seemed to try to come after him. Somehow, he made it close enough to hear her heartbeat.

"Rin!" was the only thing he could say before he was viciously pulled from the air and into a branch. At first, the thought that a branch caught him was emerging, but he knew their feel. They were never that cold.

LS-----SL

When Sesshomaru looked up, all he could see was the fanged smile. Genuine fear rose from Sesshomaru as the vampire's jaw popped free and his six fangs plunged into his neck to take the blood from the demon. All Sesshomaru could do was claw at him with his arm and watch as Rin was pulled closer to the tree.

All of a sudden and without warning, a blaze of fire rose from the ground and nearly engulfed Lin's body! LinNoTai leapt from the flame and looked below. There stood a curious little creature that seemed terribly out of breath.

"You, you thing! Step away from my master, or suffer the wrath of the great demon, Jaken! That was not all I can conjure with my 'stick'!" A blast of cold was sent to the branch that the two others were perched. The limb snapped and fell within seconds, yet Lin didn't seem to care. He pulled himself free to watch as the wound on Sesshomaru's neck found it difficult to bleed. He left with the words:

"This is far from over. Rest well today, for tonight, you're mine!" And he dived into the earth. As Sesshomaru lay on the floor, Jaken froze the whole tree and caught Rin on her fast, ungraceful fall. Not that Jaken wanted to, however. The opportunity kind of . . . landed on him. After finally waking up, Rin ran to Sesshomaru and found his sword on the side of his body. The sheath was already partially slid off, so she saw the demons of death once she touched it. Growing angry, she pulled on the blade with all her might, destroying all the demons with one strike. After Sesshomaru lay there for a short while longer, Rin started to cry. Jaken walked toward her, holding her shoulder. Her eyes were so full of tears she couldn't even see the face of the person who held her other shoulder as the sun's rays landed on them all.

Should I keep going? If I do, there's going to be a moral to this story. I'm warning you now, I'll pull out Inuyasha and his gang in the same forest, I swear! I'll even feed off of Inuyasha if you're not careful.

Eh, time to go. Hope you enjoyed reading it. Phoenix Ambrose. LinNoTai Vs. Sesshomaru, Part 1.


	2. From puppets to puppeteer

Sesshomaru Vs LinNoTai Chapter 2  
The Calm Before the Storm (or the biggest cliche ever)

A few things to know.

L-----L stands for LinNoTai's point of view.

S-----S stands for Sesshomaru's POV.

When the two meet, LS-----SL is used before a single word is shown.

If I can find the name for demon trees like the ones in my imaginary forest, I'd be grateful to find it in a review. Enjoy the story!

L-----L

The sun had risen, but LinNoTai felt no rush to rest. He knew that the first rays of sunlight to touch his unholy flesh would burn through him in its rush to reach a wall in his cave. He just didn't feel tired in the least. As a matter of fact, he felt more alert than he had in a few decades. He felt an overwhelming urge to test out his new abilities, so he decided to try something rather reckless. Running through the entrance at the first sight of cloud cover, the undead creature ran for the thickest section of the jungle. He knew one place that would be fun to play in, though it was probably not wise to go at that moment. Knowing that his rest should be first priority, his mind wandered to his last victim. The demon had been incredibly fun to toy with, but his loss of an appendage was upsetting to say the least. For some reason, it still seemed like it was a fair fight. He would have been an unbelievable opponent, had he been able to use both of his arms. After a few seconds, he began to near the place of their first encounter.

His first surprise rose to the surface when he noticed the smells of the area. It was as if his nose had become a third eye and was telling him the past. He could still smell the filthy humans who ran for their lives. Their fear helped to mask the foul odor – everything smells the same when it's scared. He could smell the anger on the young child and could follow her path through the air with enough concentration. He could especially smell all the emotions of the two demons. It was surprising that the calm one was actually immersed in his emotions yet hid everything but the scent of them. At the time of the child's tossing he was unbearably angry, but then became a mixture of shock and outrage. It must have been when he grabbed Sesshomaru's tail, he decided. Taking his mind off the smells around, he noticed that some sunlight was peeking through the clouds and landed on his gi.

LinNoTai wasted no time jumping back into the thick of the forest. Stopping to regain his senses, he checked the spot that he believed to be burned as black as the garments he wore. He was wrong. He was as well tanned as ever, if not a bit shaken and pale from fear and stress. Contemplation was not his strong point at the moment and he took his time covering the several miles back to the clearing. As he walked, he finally realized that the new demon blood inside him helped fight back the sunlight. Wondering just how strong the benefit was, he took a cautious step into the sunlight.

He couldn't see from the brightness of the light. His body felt warm, but not the way it did before he caught on fire. It almost felt like the moment of the First Bite– whatever you'd like to call that rush from the blood flooding every fiber in his being. After a few seconds, his eyes felt almost tolerant of the light that would kill him under any other circumstances. Deciding that it was time to enjoy his new lease on life, he tried a little hop toward a low branch on the nearest tree. His feet flung him through the air at breakneck speeds toward the same sky that he threw the young girl toward. Relaxing into the speed, he started to descend. Using the first branch that he could reach, he ran on the canopy top of the forest. He felt light as a feather and more than able to do anything. He felt like he could fly.

"Well, why not?" he said aloud, throwing himself into the sky as hard as possible. His smile spread, as his ascension was not slowed down, but seemed to go faster than it had even started. Looking down at his feet, he realized that he stood on a cloud that was supported on strings of light. He could control the cloud by willing it toward whatever direction he wished. Seeing a tactical advantage in this, he decided to not enjoy or abuse this newfound power and stick to what he knew. Releasing himself from the cloud was easy and actually fun. Falling through his cloud gave him a beautiful view of the land that he was falling toward, and he felt his breath gently taken away by its beauty.

The area that he was falling toward was completely surrounded by beautiful plants and trees. The forest under him held many animals that he smelled before he could see them and flowers that fought to live under the towering and lush foliage. Landing on a treetop, his heart filled with the beauty he saw around him and a smile rose from his lips. It felt almost natural to smile, like if he did it from the first night of his after life and had just realized it. Looking to the sky, he saw a flock of birds flying in a formation that looked like a wedge through the air. Animals were always surprising him through their intelligence and perseverance in any situation. Leaping from treetop to treetop was as little effort as taking steps on the beach and had nearly the same feel. As his speed gained, he noticed that there were leaves following him and he was usually stepping on treetops that were on the horizon in one stride. At that pace, he might have actually ruined the beautiful forest he was traveling over.

Stopping on one of the branches brought about a sight that he thought to never see. A large feather was floating toward him with two screaming women on top of it. After a quick sniff, he realized that they were demons and decided it would be fun to challenge them. After a few seconds of consideration, however, he decided to only challenge the older-looking one. They might have been a challenge one-on-one, but they might have torn him apart if they fought together. Waiting for their floating feather to settle down, he called to them.

S-----S

Seeing the smile on Rin's face was a sure indication of his health. At least he was still alive. Rubbing his face with his hand gave him a jump when he noticed which hand he used.

It was his left hand, grown back as if it was never gone. Moving it around, he slowly noticed that his face was showing his surprise. Regaining his composure, he made sure everyone was there and healthy. Jaken was standing over Sesshomaru, cradling his jaw from the sudden attack of Sesshomaru's forehead when he sat up. Rin was smiling through her tears and held the hand that was nearest her, her other hand still holding his Tensaiga. Finally, fatigue and the loss of blood took over Sesshomaru's body as he lay back down, lightheaded and confused. Looking toward Rin to make sure she was real, he only had enough strength to ask Jaken one question:

"What happened?" His voice was soft and gentle, much like the breeze that blew through the small section of forest where they all rested. As Jaken thought of the best way to say the bizarre things that happened, Rin could do nothing but hold the hand of her best friend and savior. Finally, Jaken cleared his throat and caught Sesshomaru's attention.

"After the vile creature that bit you disappeared into the soil around the tree, Rin began to get too close to the tree's gaping maw. Not wanting to gain your ill favor, I tried to destroy the tree with the "beauty". She froze the large abomination and Rin's own weight broke the branch and she fell through the air. Thanks to my self-sacrifice, I caught her right before she became a human pizza."

"No, you didn't! You were running and screaming around in a circle trying to get away and foolishly got under me. Thankfully, you survived. I don't know what I'd do without you and Sesshomaru." A big hug around the neck of the little green demon came next.

"Oh, come on. You don't have to - - wait. I was not running around! Take that back!" A small argument started between them while Sesshomaru tried vainly to recuperate from the wounds that rested on the side of his throat and will his demon blood to fill his body once more. The groans of pain stopped the two that argued about things that started to seem foolish and unneeded. Jaken continued:

"Young Rin took your Tensaiga out of it's sheathe and killed the demons of death that rested above you at the time. The sword also cut through the place where your arm was missing. After the sword was stuck into the ground, your arm grew back while Rin was crying. You came back to consciousness for a second while my hand was on her shoulder. You put your new hand on her other shoulder and smiled, but passed out seconds after. As we both carried you away from that horrible section of the world, I tried to console her. She seemed to not mind my few pearls of wisdom and became particularly interested on my perspective of our first meeting and my becoming your servant for life. Coming to this place, we found water and plants that gave nutrition for Rin and decided to wait until you awoke. Now you have and it's your time to lead us again. Well, at least after you feel better. You're still very pale and your wound from that horrible creature hasn't healed. Thankfully, it's not bleeding."

"That's because there's no blood in my body. That thing bled me dry and relished every drop." His old coldness settled back in, though there wasn't the normal amount of force and respect that it normally held. It was as if he was the last leaf on the tree in fall, just waiting until his time to let go and be blown away.

The breeze stopped, as if even the wind itself tried to understand the words that were just said. Nothing moved or made a sound in their little section of the world. Jaken and Rin seemed to hold their breaths to consider something strong enough to take the great Sesshomaru on and win. Finally, the wind started to blow again, and the animals of the woods began to travel around on their normal business. Some even started to walk toward them. For some reason, though, the footsteps didn't sound like a regular animal's. After a few seconds, a flash of red and silver was seen with the word "bitch!" spewed from it as if it was a greeting. The word, "sit!" followed with a crash only an inch or two away from Sesshomaru's feet. Of all the things to try and explain . . .

L-----L

"Ohayo Gozaimasu, young ladies. Or, should I say good morning? Sorry about your inconvenience with the feather, I believe it to be my fault. Gomen. I'm sorry. It did entertain me when you two screamed, though. For that, I thank you." The older one seemed to not like the fact that he was able to throw her around. She really didn't like the fact that he talked about her screaming. The younger one didn't say anything or show any emotions whatsoever. If anything, he would have to be careful of that little bundle of white with the mirror. The other one would probably throw her body within his reach, thinking of a way to defeat and destroy him. She would be the fool to fall by his hand, but not that other.

"You'd better run, if you know what's good for you. I don't like weaklings who think that they're tough enough to tempt my anger. I'll give you this one time to either walk away or beg for my forgiveness. Either way, your death will be quick and painful. I'll even –" her words were cut off by his fingers on her lips. As he walked by her to her younger sister, her anger seemed to pile on the pride she felt for herself. That turned into fury, then hate, and finally rage. Her hand tensed up into a fist by the time he bent down to talk to the albino who still looked forward.

"And how about you? Do you feel the same way as your loud friend?" The tall, dark-haired woman was ready to strike when his eyes closed and his body relaxed with the soft wind that blew. The clenched fist flew through the air, but was caught as if it was never in motion. A quick trip and kick sent her flying through the wind and out of sight. A smile crept up on his face as he realized his rudeness. "I'm sorry, young one. That was your friend, and I acted carelessly. Can I make it up to you?" He was thinking about saying more, but she raised the funny looking mirror between him and her. The mirror didn't look all that nice, and he still couldn't see his reflection. When he moved out of the way, the mirror seemed to suck in everything that was in its path. She saw that he moved and turned the chunk of fancy glass toward him again. All he could think of was just how boned he'd be if he got in the way of that thing's path. He couldn't help but let the words "This sucks" slip from his lips.

The treetops were not nearly as understanding of his situation as he had hoped. They swayed and cracked under the force of the mirror that drew in every little white ball of fluff that it came across. The trees were quickly falling into chunks of vegetation that seemed like nothing that ever held life. To save the forest, he decided to do something that didn't really make sense. It was his last chance to try, though.

He ran straight for the young girl. The demon child was shocked that he didn't keep running away and stood in a daze when she was tackled to the forest floor. As she fell, her expressionless gaze focused on his visage and was blocked by the same mirror he was trying to get away from. At that moment, all he could think of was how bad it might hurt.

The tree he stood on released one of those little white things and he landed on it as he fell. As he smelled it, he realized that it was a spirit. Landing on the ground was a new feeling to him, since he was up in the trees for a better part of the morning. The breeze that blew around him seemed to leave him alone, as if knowing he held no soul. Curiously, he walked toward the demon of white and grabbed the mirror from her hands. Looking deeply into the reflection of everything behind him, he noticed there were many balls of white fluff – um, spirits floating inside of the device.

"Cool toy. Got anything that'll work on a creature without a soul?" The question seemed to disturb that childishly stoic face as the implications settled in her mind. Normally, a smile would be growing on his face at his accomplishment, but he was honestly hoping for a challenge. Giving her the mirror back, she could only look down and start walking away. Wondering where she was going, the vampire started to follow in her footsteps.

Their walk was rather long and boring. Several times he thought about picking her up and carrying her in the direction she wished to go. She seemed to need the walk, however, so he became content to study the wildlife that was all around him. When she finally spoke, he was deeply studying a caterpillar that he picked up in the afternoon sun.

"How is it that you live without a soul? Most other creatures would just become ghouls or zombies that follow the commands of whomever holds their soul, but you don't. You have freedom of thought and you don't seem to move with the same difficulties that other soulless creatures do. No matter your strength, if you had a soul to grab, this mirror should have ripped it from your body and left you like most of that forest. I'm leaving to talk to my master, but this walking has only helped produce more questions. He might give me the answers I seek." With that, she turned around and began to walk quicker than before. The caterpillar was quickly placed on a leaf for its own safety while LinNoTai lifted the girl to his shoulder and ran through the forest.

"Point me toward your master. If he can have one as strong as you as his follower, he might be fun to fight."

The conversation between them was short and curt, filled with silences and changes in direction. Her plan was to make sure that, if he ran, he couldn't find his way back. His plan was to do what he wanted to do and never need a sequel.

S-----S

Everyone seemed there. If LinNoTai came around, he would slaughter everyone there with a smile on his face. Sesshomaru could only wonder when the inevitable would happen. They would soon ask who defeated him and left him in such a horrible state. Right now, though, Inuyasha seemed to have far too much fun just laughing at his big brother's misfortune.

"So, how long did it take him to completely defeat you, or was it too fast for you to notice?" Every now and then, Inuyasha seemed to say the wrong thing around Kagome and would catch a sitting barrage. This was one of those times. To the sound of his brother's moaning, Sesshomaru closed his eyes and his breathing eased, as if asleep. Everyone there believed he was sleeping well, so they went along on their own duties. As Kagome prepared her herbs and medicine for Sesshomaru, young Rin watched carefully, trying to take notes. This surprised Kagome, and she questioned the child about it.

"I just wanna make sure that Sesshomaru never needs the help of another woman if I can help it. If there was another woman with us, then there wouldn't be a reason for me. There isn't one now, but he still lets me be around. Sometimes, I wonder why he even lets me be around him. At least Jaken can fight. He also helps by doing things that Sesshomaru is too busy to do. All I do is follow them around like a lost puppy. If I can heal Sesshomaru up, though, then I'll have a reason to be with them. I won't be as useless."

"Don't dare say that! Do you know why Sesshomaru chose to have you with us? He didn't! The Tensaiga did. The sword has a higher purpose for you than either Sesshomaru or I will probably ever know. You are far from useless. If it weren't for your smiles and free spirit, Sesshomaru would have probably killed me and destroyed everything in his path. You keep him sane. When you are around, his face softens and his voice becomes soothing. He won't kill around you because he doesn't want you to see that type of thing any more than you already have." Jaken's voice was trembling from his anger at her words. While he was still standing by the apparently slumbering Sesshomaru, his voice went quieter out of respect. Raising his staff in the air, he finished with what he had to say. "Just as my staff gives me the power to fight, your life gives our lord Sesshomaru the power to care. Before you were in his presence, his anger filled his face to the point where it couldn't move. His driving force was the eradication of all humans and everything that was even part human. His attitude changed from the day he saved you. As you crept up behind us, you also found a spot in his heart. As much as I try to make it seem otherwise, you've also found a place in mine. You're by far my best friend and a reason for my own plans of human eradication to be put to a halt."

"Well, it's too bad that the blood drinker doesn't feel the same way." At first, the fact that Sesshomaru was speaking was too confusing to ignore. When the words settled in, everyone sat quietly and noticed the significance of their meaning.

"Wait, if he drinks blood, won't he need more? He won't get any if he kills all the humans. Besides, if he wanted to kill them all, we should let him. Humans are just wasted material that should have been used to make more demons, anyway." Before his friends could follow the path of betrayal, he fell through a very heavy line of "sit"s that got him very close to the center of the earth. "That hurt, Bitch!" Caused another line of screamed dog commands that must have hurt more than the last group.

"Guys, you saw what happened with the last demon. Kaede said he would say many things that he thought of saying, but that he wouldn't mean them. She said it would just take some time for her remedy to kick in and he would be fine. We can't hold what he says against him. It wouldn't be fair."

"Bitch!"

"Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit!"

There was nothing but silence for a few seconds. All of a sudden, there was a strong wind and a high-pitched, quiet scream in the distance.

"He just knocked Kagura through the air and to the west. She's not coming down any time soon. Even her wind isn't slowing her down much. He either killed more demons, or my blood must have given him an added effect that not even I know about. There's also the possibility that he never tried his best against me." The thought of being used as a toy didn't settle well with the noble demon and he could feel his face grow rigid. "That thing that I'm going to fight soon is already strong enough to rip me apart with no effort. He doesn't need my blood to be faster than I am. He doesn't need my abilities to destroy Naraku, even. He could probably tear him apart without getting touched."

"Then, what can we do against something like that?" Kagome asked, wondering the same thing that everyone else wondered. Her voice was starting to crack from the constant screaming.

"We can always lead him to Naraku and hope that I'm wrong."

L-----L

It was nearing twilight when the sky seemed to boil with clouds. The sight made Lin both worry and smile. The person in that direction was very powerful to call on the power of the sky. At least he would have fun after all the playing around he had with those last two. The blood of Sesshomaru in his belly was finally being digested properly, so he knew he was nearing his peak performance. It was time to dance.

There was a large castle in the middle of the storm, directly under the center of it. He was getting bored with the walking around and decided to run at full speed. The idea was fine, but putting it into effect was very different. The demon in white found it hard to hold on when he reached full speed. After nearly having her fall off his shoulders several times, he slowed down until she could still hold on. He was up to the front door within seconds.

"Can you let me go so I can knock?" The question was simple enough, so he agreed. After several knocks, the door opened slowly, the rusty hinges creaking in the empty, roofless hallway. The man who stood in the doorway was the same Lin who was right behind her.

"Did you enjoy knocking? Oh, yeah. There's a big hole in your castle, and it seems that you can just jump in if you feel like it." The smile that was on his face was consciously restrained to not show the three sets of fangs in his mouth. With no change in her composure, she walked by the undead creature and straight down one of the corridors. A little confused, he followed the tiny demon to a door, where she opened it and walked through. Never one to back down, Lin followed with all the innocence of a newborn. Not his wisest choice.

There was a creature at the far corner of the room that had long hair and dark clothes. Beside him was the little girl demon that led him there. The smile on the demon's face said it was a trap better than any words could.

A dark, ominous wind rose around the two and seemed to not reach them. The man in the middle spoke.

"I am Naraku. You are in my home and now must be punished for your trespassing." Short, precise and threatening without saying what the threat was. This guy wasn't going to give the time for a quick remark. Dodging to the side of the foul wind turned out to be a wise thing to do, especially when the blast decimated and melted the wall.

"Okay, I'm guessing that this whole fight is going to be to stay away from those breezes of yours. Fine. Let's go."

And I'm leaving you guys on that note. Evil, aren't I? So far, this story isn't holding up its rating of R. That'll change soon. Well, I have to run now. I'll work on the next part soon. Phoenix Ambrose. LinNoTai Vs. Sesshomaru, Part 2.


	3. The Two Villains Clash

LinNoTai Vs. Sesshomaru

Part 3

By: Phoenix Ambrose

Well, this is Part 3. Part 4 is still being worked out in my head, but you'll never see it. Why? Because you're being mean and not giving me any reviews! Am I asking so much? Just let me know if I'm doing a good job at this. I NEED to know if this story can be better. GIVE ME REVIEWS!!! Please?

The things you can look forward to:

-The action is becoming more intense

-The story is becoming deeper and more detailed

-The romance, though shorter, is growing stronger as far as bonding

-My writing style is changing somewhat. Next part will have far more detail to explain things. Also, the whole next chapter will consist of one kick-a battle sequence, so HELP ME OUT! Review me, and give me some pointers (especially you fanfiction veteran writers and readers).

L-----L

"Hey, you got anything to eat in here?" The attitude that started a fight with that Kagura chick only put a look of confusion on the demon. As Naraku was about to answer, a fist landed on his open mouth and forced Naraku's budding fangs down his own throat. Blood dripping from his fist, Lin could do nothing but laugh. Pondering the situation, a wide smile spread across his face. His darkening skin only helped enhance the look of evil on his three sets of fangs.

Naraku seemed to notice that the fight wasn't going to be a pushover like the ones before. It donned on him that he might get a little bloody that time around. The laugh from the creature became a force more powerful than the breeze of poison around them. "How are you getting under my skin? No one can do that, but you do it with no difficulty and with even less hesitation. Tell me how!" The normally cool head of Naraku seemed to crack and erupt obscenities that should never be placed on a historical rendering. After the recuperation of his senses, he looked toward his young, pale helper. With a nod, she almost seemed to fly at Lin. Attacking with a dagger made of glass, her speed was exceptional and kept Lin on his toes. The thick fog that began to fill the room wasn't helping, either. Surprisingly, the stagnant poison held no odor and made it easier to pinpoint the ankle-biter's position. One quick slash and her blade of glass was broken into shatters. Realizing the resourcefulness of Naraku, a thought occurred.

To the eyes of Naraku, the demon that was clad in black just disappeared. Wondering if the fight even took place, he looked to his side for the young demon girl under his power. She, in turn, was looking directly behind him as her breathing began to waver. Her normally placid face held fear unknown to Naraku, but it was becoming painfully apparent that he was in a fight that would - at least - be a challenge to him.

S-----S

After night fell on the group, the feelings of tension and friction began to wane and a sense of peace settled. That peace was only broken twice – once, by Inuyasha reaching the outside of his new hole and explaining in vivid detail how he would get Kagome back for his pain and suffering. Though her voice was nearly gone, she was still able to make his hole about thirty feet deeper with but a single command. The other was from Kagura flying above the trees as fast as possible, cursing Lin and sounding like if she was taking some of the words Inuyasha used. That was around dusk and passed a short while ago. Sesshomaru had just enough of his demon blood flowing through him to be able to stand, but not much else. When he did stand, it was only for a short while. It was usually just to brush the dust off his clothes and take the twigs out of his hair.

Rin was more than happy to help, feeling it was a privilege to help her savior. Sesshomaru's face couldn't hold back his lack of energy and his pain from Rin, no matter how hard he tried. Rin believed that he was still hurting from the lack of blood or from the bite marks that were finally healing, but that wasn't the case at all. The pain subsided several minutes ago, and the bite mark wasn't forcing itself to be noticed. He was hurt because of the words Rin spoke to Kagome. He was awake, even though he didn't really hold the strength at the time to open his eyes. It cut him to the bone, how she made herself seem like if she was nothing to him. Even though Jaken meant well, his words were not said how he meant them to be said. At least he admitted his caring for his human companion.

Rin's tiny, swift fingers worked on Sesshomaru's body as delicately as the clothing that covered his skin. With as much care as a mother tending her child, Rin ran her fingers through his tail and freed the debris from its fluffy prison. As Sesshomaru fought to steady his breathing, a wave of ecstasy came over him. The gentle caress of Rin's touch became as intoxicating as his first kill, or his first love. A shock began to grow on every hair that came in contact with her slender fingers. It came free with her release. His breathing became short and sharp as her pace quickened, freeing the leaves as well as his passion. His eyes rolled to the back of his head as his body began to yearn for the one thing he wanted more than most anything else. His legs felt like water, his arms were numb, and even his head felt light and disconnected. Before he could reach the crescendo of his enjoyment, Rin was done. His tail was clean and as white as ever. His garments were clean – at least, the front of them were. The back was still covered in dirt, since he was lying in dirt during his little episode of physical joy.

Inuyasha had popped his head out of his little hole at about the time of Sesshomaru's tail-touching fun. The medication that Kaede made finally started to work, so his lips stayed sealed about what he witnessed. All he could do was shudder from the sight of his big brother being pleased in front of his very eyes. Sitting by Kagome, Inuyasha said the two words that she never expected to hear.

"I'm sorry." As her face froze in shock, Inuyasha curled up into a little ball at her side. Their friends exploded into a conversation over the dog-demon's words, seeing as he would usually find the words to be an insult to his pride. His answer to their loud chatter was curt and almost too sweet.

"Look, I have no problem with apologizing when I feel it's deserved. My words to Kagome were just flat out mean. I can barely believe that I thought of her like I did. She's so nice to me, and I hurt her feelings. All she ever does is help us out on this quest for the jewel shards. She has a family in the future, but she's always so willing to help us out. Her life is at risk at all times and, even though she can hold her own, she constantly finds herself in situations that she can't handle. She still stays, though, and all I do is scream at her for it. I feel like such a fool afterwards. Even though I do, I never apologize. If you want me to say it the old fashioned way, I'll say this – It's because I'm sleepy and don't want to be thrown into the ground again." Inuyasha laughed calmly, his eyes still gazing up to Kagome's. Sango and Miroku were both dumbfounded by the almost poetic opening of Inuyasha's feelings. Shippo could only sit by Kilala, his pride swelling his chest to the point where it was hard for his small arms to cross it. Feeling his job was done, Shippo stood and walked toward Sesshomaru and Rin.

Sesshomaru had felt his face blush before Rin could see it. He tried to cover his face, but his weakened hands were softly put aside by her tender touch. The embarrassment he felt was quickly mistaken for a fever as Rin grabbed a bucket and sprinted to the river. Calling Jaken to him, Sesshomaru told his green servant what had transpired. Jaken focused on every word as if it might be Sesshomaru's last and finally gained the courage to ask a question.

"If I am not mistaken, Rin is old enough to marry. She seems fairly interested in you, and is a terrific person – for a human. I know it's unbearably against your beliefs, but maybe you should try to realize her care for you, master. She treats you like the king you are, but would you rather treat her like a queen? Maybe even your own queen?" Jaken had been careful to not look in the direction of Sesshomaru as the words jumped free from his lips. Knowing that he might have overstepped his bounds, he slowly averted his gaze from the blade of grass he had focused on and directed his focus on his master's eyes.

They were never as peaceful as they were at that moment. Even the dead never held such a peace in their eyes, and the fire that was inside him shone through as he began to stand. His greatest efforts were needed to get himself into a kneeling stance, but he then had to stop and catch his breath. Lending his staff, Jaken was the victim to one of the oddest sights he ever saw – Sesshomaru's smile. It held no malice or hidden meaning, it seemed to be a smile of complete and utter understanding. Standing dumbfounded by what had become ingrained to his memory, Jaken could only stand by while Sesshomaru ran through the forest after Rin.

Even though he was a demon of incredible speed and power, his lack of blood slowed him down considerably. Realizing how slow his feet were, he considered himself only the pathetic speed of Inuyasha. Still, making it to the river took mere seconds. What he saw at that moment was a sight that almost made him turn around and run back out of confusion.

The bucket of water was still on the side of the river, along with the majority of Rin's clothes. Looking into the river, he could see nothing. Even with the starlight and the moon nearing full, his eyes couldn't see anything around that looked like Rin or her footprints. Focusing his sense of smell, he noticed her scent went into the water and did not show up again. With no hesitation, he jumped into the water.

The water was actually warmer than the night sky and the lush river bottom seemed to enjoy the moonlight. Sesshomaru didn't care, still looking for anything that might lead Rin's rescue. Hearing a splash from near Rin's discarded clothes, he swam up to the water's surface and peered at the figure that made itself quite at home around Rin's clothing. It took a few seconds for the water to get out of Sesshomaru's eyes, but he wasn't planning on letting Rin's kidnapper get away. Before the water was out of his eyes, however, the figure disappeared into the river.

Wondering what could have been touched in such little time, he went back to the clothes. They seemed to have swelled in the short time that he spent swimming. Checking through them, he realized that there were herbs and remedies from the deepest part of the river. Not wanting to waste time, he jumped back in.

Swimming a little upstream was easy, seeing as he wasn't a dog-paddler. As he began to dive to the bottom, his lack of blood finally began to overpower his sense of rescue. His arms started to grow heavy. His legs were getting numb. He began to find it hard to focus on swimming. As his mind began to haze out of consciousness, the figure swam toward him and grabbed his motionless body.

Awakening from his haze, he realized that he was coughing up water. The two figures that were over him looked rather similar, yet he felt he only knew one. The unknown character began to talk. It almost sounded as if the thing was trying to talk in water, but it was kneeling by his side.

"I believe he is coming around. I must tend to the rest of my garden. I believe he must be the one you need these for, and I hope you give him some if he's not. He has little blood in him and my crops are made for demons that are at a loss of bodily fluids. They'll fix him right up. Well, better go before I suffocate." And with that, the creature dived into the river without a splash.

Though it took a few seconds for the words to form, Sesshomaru finally asked the question that was bothering him. "Who was that?" His words held no jealousy, only curiosity.

"Her name was Tarikatu. She said it was okay, though, if I called her Fishy. She said she's a fish-demon, like you are a dog-demon. She has this huge garden under the river, and her whole family works a section of it and frees their herbs when they're ready. They feed the animals here and help out other demons when they believe it's needed. She said they don't need anything from the outside world, since women and men come to this river to die and fall in love with her people. She said some other stuff, but I was too busy getting some of her herbs for you to listen. Good thing she didn't mind." Her laughter brought a smile to Sesshomaru's face and then a laugh of his own. Even as he lay there, he could still feel his body fill with the demon blood that sustained him until the night before. Finally sitting up, he looked deeply into Rin's eyes and tried to wish the rest of the world away. Finding that it didn't work as well as he had hoped, he found himself saying the things he feared to say.

"Rin, I have a confession to make. Before I met you, I was going to kill all the humans in this world. Then, I was going to kill all the half-demons. That includes my own brother. I hated them all, and I don't even know why to this day. When you saw me in that clearing the first time, you were the only human who didn't fear me. You even tried to give me food, though I only resisted your attempts. When my strength was back to that which it should have been, I tried to leave you out of my life. I stubbornly believed that you didn't know the creature you dared to help. When you were screaming, I ran as fast as I could with Jaken in my arm. To this day, I have no explanation as to why the old me would do such a thing. I saved your life and believed some foolish debt was paid. I am very grateful that I was wrong. I still have a lot more to do." The sound of the water's surface being broken caught his attention as the fish-demon stood near them.

"Excuse me, but your voice is breaking through the water and disturbing the plants. I don't wish to be rude, but can you two talk somewhere else?" Giving their pardons and thanks, the two began to walk back to their camp as Fishy sank to the river's bottom yet again.

L-----L

Most of the room was destroyed. The roof had already fallen in so many times that LinNoTai began to wonder if the building was a castle or a pagoda. Not liking the debris, he began to make a tactical retreat. His goal was the courtyard he saw during his walk to the worst room in fighting history.

Naraku seemed upset about his enemy. This demon didn't use a weapon when he hit him – he used his bare hand. The creature didn't even have his clothes burned off from the poison, he just laughed at him and kept with his upsetting style. He never stayed in one place long and, when he was put in a corner, he attacked with more force than Inuyasha or any other demon ever did. It was still a sport to the dark-skinned one, seeing as he got free of his grip every time he put himself within reach. His jade-green eyes showed a cold, dead light within them that only helped chill Naraku to the bone. Seeing as Kanna had fallen a while back, it was just Naraku and Lin fighting for about an hour. Naraku was scratched and bleeding down the sides of his face, along with every part of flesh that could be seen through the rips in his clothes. His breathing was heavy, the smell of his own blood getting thick in the air. Lin began to notice the scent of Naraku completely enveloped in blood and stopped. Naraku took his shot and hit Lin with a full-blast strike in the back.

The area that surrounded LinNoTai was completely engulfed by the poison smoke. Naraku's breathing relaxed, as he saw no sign of his mysterious assailant.

"Well, you sure were a nuisance. It's almost sad that you fell so easily. Too bad I didn't leave enough to feed on – you would have been a great addition to my body. All of that untapped potential." Turning around, Naraku couldn't help but crack a smile. If he was able to fell an enemy of such strength, he could rip Inuyasha and his friends apart without any stress. He had seriously underestimated himself. He was a terrific warrior.

"What untapped potential?" Came from behind the walking half-demon of poison. Slowly turning around, Naraku noticed that the poison was still holding the shape of the beast he believed to have just destroyed. The fog slowly became the exact outline of the supposedly fallen fighter. Out of what remained, a figure of pure power erupted free and drove Naraku to the ground. The jade-green eyes that were ever-present before had become the same shade of dark purple as the poison inside him. Slowly, though, they were turning black before Naraku's very eyes. All of the strength that Naraku had from the demons inside him gave him no power over the strength grinding him into the ground. Lin could do nothing more than smile at his shivering catch. The fangs that were once pearly white had turned into six daggers the color of onyx. Naraku tore at the monster that held even more evil than he himself with no luck. His arms were grabbed and thrown through the ground so hard he couldn't pull them free. His rage grew, but with his arms stuck in the bricks under his castle, he could only shout obscenities at the creature that was still over him.

Lin got up and walked away from Naraku. Naraku couldn't understand the reason, but decided to try to free himself from his imminent demise. Watching the thing leave, he came to a realization – Lin was going after Kanna. Not knowing what to do, Naraku fell helplessly to the floor. With all his strength, he called the one person he didn't really want to ever call.

S-----S

The walk back to the camp was slow and awkward. Neither of the two could think of what to say, but they didn't seem to want a change to their walk's condition. Except for a familiar voice calling out for Kagura, the walk seemed to help relax their nerves. Sesshomaru chewed the herbs slowly, feeling as if it was turning directly into blood. Feeling his health return, his spirits raised and a smile crept onto his face. Rin saw this, and was pleased. Sesshomaru, rather out of character, began the conversation.

"Rin, can you tell me about your past?" Rather fair question, seeing as she knew most of his life.

"Um, I guess I can. My mommy and daddy were killed in front of me when I was little. I lived on the streets or in other people's houses as their servants. They would usually do bad stuff to me. A lot of it hurt so much that I wanted to cry. Some even beat me. One beat me every day until a friend of his beat him at game of shogi and he gave me to him as part of their bet. He was nicer, but I never saw him much. He was a warlord and died from another one while protecting his land. I had to travel the land to find a place to eat and sleep after that. That's how I got in that town I found you around. I guess that's it." Her smile didn't crack during her whole recollection of her painful past. Her strength was reassuring to Sesshomaru, seeing as she was so strong that memories like those didn't seem to bother her. Most of the walk back was in silence and smiles.

L-----L

Lifting the frail demon to eye height, he took a hard sniff and seemed pleased. Naraku couldn't understand the smile of satisfaction that crept across Lin's face, but he knew it wouldn't matter. Something bad was about to happen.

Holding the white-clad body close, Lin's smile grew. His teeth were showing, seemingly too long to ever bite anything. His gaze on Naraku didn't break until his jaw came free and his teeth were in Kanna's neck. Pulling with all of his might, Naraku still couldn't pull free. Naraku fell to the ground. His eyes were full of tears, seeing one of his children about to be taken from him. He knew his death was not far away, and he never gained the power he wanted. Even as his eyes closed, he found himself calling for Kagura. Before he fell into unconsciousness, he felt warm fingers on his lips and fell silent.

S-----S

The Inuyasha group seemed like if they were getting ready to go somewhere. Sesshomaru found it surprising, seeing as they didn't even know if he was okay yet. Kagome seemed angry about something, but she didn't let it bother her much. Inuyasha was holding her back, while Sango continued to administer an unhealthy dose of attacks against Miroku. Shippo was even doing his part, biting Miroku in the ankles and calling him a "hentai". Jaken quietly walked over to Sesshomaru's side and brought him up to speed on everything that happened. Short version – after Sesshomaru left, everyone in the Inuyasha group fell asleep except for Miroku. He was on watch. Hearing a sound that never existed, he tripped on a rock that he imagined and conveniently landed on top of Kagome. When she awoke, his only words were, "Since you've obviously changed your mind, would you like to have my child?" (The fact that he's still breathing surprises me. He should truly be dead. He was beat past an inch of his life and he still apologizes. Astounding.) As Sesshomaru listens with something between tolerance and boredom, Rin laughs her little head off at the carnage across the clearing.

Hearing the laughter, the Inuyasha team stops their beating and starts to laugh also. Rubbing his head, Miroku places his other hand out for support and finds a very firm but soft support on Sango. Feeling her behind being violated, Sango unleashes another volley of attacks that made "sit" look like it was asked. Sesshomaru could only ask if they heard a loud scream and a gust of wind going by. Seeing an opening to be the good guy again, Miroku commented that he heard a loud noise and rushed after it when the same wind threw him on top of Kagome. He was kindly reminded that he said he tripped over a rock by the foot of Sango.

"And these five have found nearly all the jewel shards? I guess it makes sense, seeing as they all hate each other so much the evil shards pull toward them and the pure ones are brought toward Kagome and Inuyasha's love. Whatever might be the case, I believe that LinNoTai is fighting Naraku as we speak. If we move as fast as we can, we might be able to kill the winner and be rid of them both. I hope you're with me, Inuyasha." His words, though still full of the poison they always held, also had a pleading quality that was hard to ignore.

"You got it, Sesshomaru. As bad as our hatred is for each other, there's no way I'm letting it get in the way of wiping out two of the greatest evils in all of Japan. I guess you're back up to full strength. I don't know what you used to get your strength back so easily, but I hope you kept it. You'll need more after this fight." Inuyasha said as he checked his sword.

"And, why is that? Do you think there's a chance that I'll lose to him again? Or, do you want to have some in case you begin to lose?"

"I think we'll both last through a fight against either of those monsters. I don't care about them." Turning toward his big brother, he said, "After I'm done with them, I'll put this sword through your gut and not your arm."

L-----L

"Hey, it's fly-by again. You're not worth my time, so why don't you go home?" Letting the white demon fall to the floor before he could even get a good taste was kind of required this time, seeing as he needed his full attention for the vengeful demon. The words burned Kagura as badly as any fire could. All she could say in response was:

"I am home." With those words, she lunged toward the black-eyed abomination and threw everything she had at him. It was not enough, seeing as he evaded everything she could muster.

Infuriated, she called upon the wind to tear through him like a sword. Grabbing the wind blade, Lin spun it back at the demon as her shocked face was cut through from her jaw to her chin. From her right foot to her neck, she had a cut that stopped only deep enough to scar. Lin didn't really care, since she wouldn't have the time to heal.

Running at the wind demon, Lin kicked her squarely in the gut and popped up, elbowing her during his spin. On his landing, he knife-hand chopped Kagura on the open side of her neck and watched as her body fell heavily on her deeply cut side. Lin laughed at how weak she was and noticed his hand was bleeding. Must have been when the wind blade was grabbed and given back, he finally decided. Even though he wanted to keep fighting, he noticed something was wrong with his blood. It smelled . . . human.

"Naraku, are you a human? Your blood sure reeks of human, and it's sickening. Sesshomaru believed you to be a full demon of unimaginable power and resources, yet you force your stench upon me. You deserve the death I'll give you after I'm done with your full demon children." Turning back toward Kagura, He slowly studied both her and Kanna. Neither moved, yet he knew they had the strength to. He could smell it. So, why didn't they?

Kagura and Kanna were planning a trap. Once Lin was in reach, Kagura tried to sweep Lin off his feet while Kanna drew her broken glass knife and attempted to shred him to bits. The plan was fine in theory, but it didn't go to well. His feet were firmly planted when the trip was free and only hurt her foot. Kanna was caught in mid air and subjected to a very brutal beating. Her spanking ended with her being used as the belt on her sister. After a few seconds of merciless pounding, Lin released Kanna's limp body and lifted Kagura. With a new belt in hand, he beat on Naraku until his arms were tired. Kagura was completely limp and Naraku was dazed from the pain. Looking around, LinNoTai believed he finally could have fun.

S-----S

Sesshomaru, now full of vitality, had Rin and Jaken on his shoulders. Inuyasha was carrying Kagome, while Kilala carried Miroku, a very paranoid Sango, and Shippo. Myoga was on Kagome, but he was too focused to even partake of the healthy young woman's tasty blood. They neared the castle of Naraku as it loomed on the horizon.

L-----L

For a short while, Naraku didn't see anything around him. He felt so calm. The pain that was all over him left. His scar was missing, so he was no longer damned. Looking through the darkness, he saw a figure walking toward him. Afraid that it was the beast that had hurt him so badly, he readied himself for a long battle. After a few seconds, he came to a realization. Whatever was coming wore a kimono. The monster that he fought was wearing ninja gear and was shorter than this . . . thing. As his eyes became accustomed to the light, he finally realized that Kikyo was walking toward him.

His heart skipped a beat. Kikyo held her hand out to help him up. For some reason, he found it hard to move until he did so. Looking back, Naraku noticed that his human body was lying on the floor right where he was defeated. Looking at his hands, he realized that he looked like he did before all of the horrible things that happened took place. He began to wonder what happened in the first place. Not understanding the reasons for his situation, he fell into the gaze of Kikyo's eyes. Her smile relaxed him to no end. When he reached for her face, she seemed to be scared into hysteria. Wondering what was wrong, he grabbed her face to steady her. Her face fell apart like the clay mold that she was. Horrified, his whole world seemed to fall. Everything went dark again as he was surrounded by laughter. It sounded like the blood drinker. His whole world was falling apart, and now he was forced to suffer this. Naraku began to will himself back to the world of the living and opened his eyes.

The sight was horrendous. Lin had both of Naraku's daughters in his arms and was contemplating which to drink first. Trying desperately to get free, Naraku ripped his right shoulder out of its socket and pulled it free. Lin couldn't be more bored of Naraku if he tried. Kicking him hard on his left side shattered Naraku's left arm and all his hopes of freeing himself. The pain was intense, but Naraku willed himself back to focus. He pulled his left arm out of its early grave and reconnected his right shoulder. Lin, not caring in the least, began to feed off of Kagura.

"If I must kill Kagura and Kanna to preserve their souls, then I would rather do that than let their strengths be a part of you. My poison can melt them away. I'm just sorry that I have to do this." With those words, a tornado of poison smoke grew about five feet from Lin's meal.

Naraku thought he pulled it off. He thought he got the best of Lin and saved the two demon women. There was no way he could stop the poison tornado. Or was there?

A tornado grew only inches from Naraku and continued to strengthen. As Lin drank from Kagura, his power over wind continued to grow. With the last drop, he lifted Naraku from the ground and pulled his poison tornado in. Naraku, being flung through the air and spinning rapidly, felt freed from the tornado just as abruptly as he was pulled in. The tornado had disappeared. Lin seemed too drawn by the power under his control to notice that Naraku was on a collision course with him.

Turning toward Kanna, his teeth nudged their way back in the bite mark that was made earlier. The blood was just as sweet as the time before. Holding her close, he noticed that he changed with the drinking of this one's blood. His hands – no, his whole body – grew lighter in color and seemed to shine like hers. The hairs that were free were starting to shine as if they were holding their own light. His nails were growing a strong white, as if they were borne of light. Even his eyes seemed to have a light inside of them, because he could see himself and everything around him. As a matter of fact, he was able to "see" every living creature on the planet. As he slowly put the young demon down he looked directly at Naraku.

Naraku wasn't fazed by the fact that the beast knew his whereabouts. His attack would finish him before he could do anything. Besides, his main power was his evasion. What could he do if Naraku went through the earth? The plan was foolproof.

Good thing LinNoTai is no fool. Standing at ground zero, he took the full strike. Naraku laughed, as he was about to hit him. His laughter was met by the sound of crushing bones and mangled sinew at contact. Finally, his laughter ended. Lin peeled Naraku off his body before he could get too upset. Looking at the lethargic body without a single supporting bone to hold him upright, Lin began to wonder if he should allow the creature to die. Seeing the shining figure in front of him, Naraku started to wonder if he was dead. All he was able to say was:

"If you are an angel, please take me to Kikyo's side. Even if I don't deserve it, I'll spend all of eternity trying to." With those words, his body fell limp (like if 'no bones' wasn't limp enough) and his eyes shut. Lin almost felt sad for the fighter he defeated. Deciding to go against his own promise, Lin opened his mouth and fed on Naraku's last thoughts.

What he saw was how Naraku was made. His only reason for power was to have Kikyo, who seemed to be Sesshomaru's brother's ex-girlfriend or something. She nursed this Onigumo guy back to health after he was tattooed with a spider mark. That was the symbol of the condemned in his time. After his recuperation, he believed that the burns on his body meant that Kikyo would never like him. Well, that's what he thought. He called upon somewhere like a hundred or so demons to devour him so he could use their power as his own. With the power of the demons, he looked like his old self again, but the villagers found out that he was in the cave and torched the whole thing while he was inside. He died that day, only to be reborn as Naraku. His thirst for power was always for Kikyo's hand. He believed that she wanted power.

LinNoTai put Naraku's body on his throne and turned around.

LS-----SL

"Okay, let's get this over with. Anybody who wants the chance to fight me, I will meet you in the courtyard. If you don't plan on fighting, go upstairs and watch. That would be you two, Shippo and Myoga. I advise you to follow, Rin." The fact that he knew Shippo's name quickly took over his anger at being considered a non-fighter. Myoga just bounced up the stairs gingerly and promised to root for the good guys. Shippo took Lin's advice and went upstairs behind the little flea-demon as Rin hesitantly took Lin's advice.

Outside was the same as always. The breeze felt nice, seeing as Lin didn't cause it. Sesshomaru noticed before anyone the changes in the blood-drinker – his eyes were a brighter green than he remembered, as the whites in his eyes seemed to have a purple fog dancing inside them. His skin, though lighter, also had a brighter shine than before. His hair still had the same color of his, but Lin's hair was shinier by far. His muscles seemed to have grown under his clothing and it was as if his ninja gear was plotting to explode at the first chance. His hands were immaculately clean, and his nails were as white as Kanna's cold skin. The horrible realization of it all finally came to light - - they had to kill this monster before anything else could happen. But first, Sesshomaru had to ask Lin a question.

"LinNoTai, did you fight me with all you had?" The only question that could come to mind just threw itself out.

"Honestly? I put everything I had to the fight between us. I had to sacrifice some of my own blood to get to the speed you saw me reach. Why?"

"Why? Because I now know that I have not reached my full potential. This fight will end as it began – LinNoTai versus Sesshomaru."

Now THAT'S an ending to this part. And yes, that is the end of this piece. What do you think? Oh, yeah – remember to read them all in order. Have fun. Give me more ideas for a huge battle scene. The good guys can't just sit back while Sesshomaru gets slaughtered. I'm evil. Phoenix Ambrose. LinNoTai Vs. Sesshomaru, Part 3.


End file.
